Do you ever feel like Bravo tends to saturate the network with a particular show? There are about 846 Real Housewives franchises and then numerous spinoffs from those.
Now it appears Below Deck is front and center because you simply cannot escape this program. Whether it’s a weekday marathon or one of the many spawn of the original program, Below Deck is apparently here to stay! Naturally this seems like a good time to review the worst mishaps we’ve seen on the show thus far.
Below Deck / Chandler Drops A Guest
The original Below Deck with Captain Lee Rosbach is the absolute OG. If you aren’t on a luxury yacht with the Stud of the Sea, are you really even on the water? Season 6 was Bosun Chandler Brooks’ first and final appearance on the show. He only made it through nine episodes until Captain Lee provided him with a one way ticket back to obscurity. See, Chandler never really got the hang of being in charge. He also didn’t get the hang of helping charter guests when he dropped some poor woman straight to the ground. When the guests visited the beach for the day, the crew rushed to transport their high-paying clients to the sandy paradise before nightfall. In Chandler’s hurry to get his passenger to her destination, her destination almost became the ER because dude basically let her eat dirt. Then he had the audacity not to apologize immediately. Buh-bye Chandler.
Below Deck Sailing Yacht / Captain Glenn Breaks The Boat
Captain Glenn Shepherd of Below Deck Sailing Yacht fame rivals Captain Lee for “cool guy who pilots big boats” status. Glenn is kind, generous with his time, and soft spoken until he rams the vessel into a hard object. Season 2 showed us what happens when Captain Glenn has an uh-oh moment. And he showed us… twice. Episode 11 is when Glenn backed that thang up and chaos ensued. Gary King, the first mate, started yelling out decreasing distances between the yacht and the pier, but due to the strong wind and swell, the boat continued to travel at full speed in that direction. Captain Glenn was unable to steer the ship backwards due to a mechanical issue that short-circuited the thrusters. What happened next landed Glenn on the mishaps list. Viewers not only see the accident, but also get a close-up look at Captain Glenn’s spirit breaking as he realizes in heartbreakingly real time that he has not only caused thousands of dollars in yacht damage, but has also done it with a camera fixed on him. It’s okay Captain Glenn, we know it wasn’t your fault.
Below Deck / Cocaine Turnaround
Season 1, Episode 1 of Below Deck started off with high hopes and an allegedly high group of guests. This was a charter that lasted almost an entire day before interior stew Kat Held saw something in the passenger quarters that resembled cocaine. Sure, lots of things resemble blow but when the seated guests kept getting up to “powder their nose” at a meal, it was safe to assume the white stuff wasn’t talcum powder. Kat reported the substance and once word got to Captain Lee, he turned the boat around and went back to the dock. It was only then that Lee brought the hammer down and kindly told the clients the jig was up. At least the group of worldly photographers had the decency to look shocked.
Below Deck Mediterranean / Hannah’s Exit
This one stung because it was the first season where we had a female Captain, a female Bosun, and a female Chief Stew. Season 5 of Below Deck Mediterranean was meant to break the glass ceiling, but it really only broke our hearts. Hannah Ferrier was never a fan favorite, but what happened to her even incensed the Hannah Haters. After a few episodes of watching Malia White crawl so far up Captain Sandy Yawn’s ass that she could see light, things went horribly left for Hannah. Taking medicine for anxiety, Hannah was fired after Malia ALLEGEDLY went through her purse, took pics of Rx bottles, and forwarded them to her beloved boss. Sandy fired Hannah for having “undeclared” drugs onboard (Valium and a vape pen.) For whatever reason, Sandy had to make it an extra-humiliating experience for Hannah as she was followed to the bathroom and then accused of flushing the contraband. So much for that glass ceiling.
Below Deck / Ashton Goes Overboard
For me, the most shocking mishap still has to be Season 6, Episode 10 when deckhand Ashton Pienaar went overboard in a heinous accident that scared the proverbial crap out of everyone except a very alert and brave cameraman. Ashton encountered difficulties as the yacht departed Puna’auia, Tahiti. He was laying out the line to tow the tender behind the yacht while standing on the swim deck. He was unknowingly standing on the wrong side of the line, with his foot near the water. The tow rope quickly caught Ashton’s ankle and dragged him overboard. He screamed for assistance as he was being dragged underwater and struggling for air. Over the radio, deckhand Rhylee Gerber, said “man overboard.” Fortunately, Brent Freeburg, one of the cameramen, jumped in and saved that boy. “We were within 30 seconds of him dying,” Captain Lee said while choking back tears. “I’d have to call his parents and tell them their son is dead and I’m responsible. I don’t know how to deal with that. I have kids. And I don’t know how I’d make that call.” To this day, that brush with mortality is one of the biggest stand alone scary moments in Bravo history.
TELL US- WHAT BELOW DECK MISHAP WOULD YOU ADD? WHICH MISHAP LIVES RENT FREE IN YOUR MIND? WHAT WOULD YOU SAY IS THE WORST MISHAP TO OCCUR?
[Photo by: Karolina Wojtasik/Bravo]
